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by: Gary L. Hutchens Are you happy? What would make you happy? There’s a lot of talk about happiness. The appearance is that a great many people are unhappy with their lives. While many tell us we need to be happy, we need to go out and find happiness, they seem rather shallow in their analysis of what happiness really is and how to be happy.
by: Gary L. Hutchens Our culture is obsessed with materialism. Another way of putting it is we are consumed by the never ending drive to possess more and more things! A part of that obsession is the mindset that acquiring those things- fancy clothes with the right labels, a new car, a bigger house, a huge flat screen high-def television, the newest game system, the latest smokin’ hot electronic gadgetry…- will bring us happiness and a sense of fulfillment. The happiness, however, proves to be hollow and fleeting, and of course all of those things have to be paid for, a reality that tends to further diminish the fulfillment we thought having them would bring. We’ll never find lasting contentment in the possession of things.
by: Gary L. Hutchens We hear a lot of talk about fairness these days. Is it fair that some people are wealthy while others are poor? Is it fair that some families have two or three cars in their driveway while others cannot afford even one car? Is it fair that some individuals have a great, high-salary job while others cannot find a job? Is it fair that some people own a huge, fancy home while others will probably never be able to buy even a tiny home of their own?
by: Gary L. Hutchens A mother’s love is special. It may be the best illustration we commonly observe of what agape love describes in scripture. A mother loves her child no matter what. In spite of how many pregnancies are terminated by abortion, a mother’s love remains one of the strongest resisting forces against that procedure. A child may be born severely handicapped, but his mother loves him just the same, with all of the same affection, tenderness and sincerity she bestows upon her children who are not handicapped. In observing her deep love and devoted care, without even thinking about it she serves as a graphic visual example of true, selfless love.
By: Gary L. Hutchens The apostle John wrote: “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life…” (1 Jn. 5:13). What a wonderful assurance! A follow-up question would be, “but on what basis can I truly know that I am saved?” The standard John gave was “you who believe in the name of the Son of God.” But many people intellectually believe in Jesus while not living faithfully to Him. Jesus stated, “If you love Me, keep My commandments,” the sense being, “if you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (Jn. 14:15). Obviously, obedience plays a vital part in what John describes as believing in the name of the Son of God.
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September 2022
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